Cancer Focus The Hollings Cancer Center (HCC) is fully committed to cancer research and has effectively utilized the CCSG award and designation as an NCI-Cancer Center in 2009 to further strengthen this focus. This commitment to cancer research is integral to all HCC activities. This continued focus is demonstrated by: 1) The increase in the substantial portfolio of basic, clinical, translational, and population-based research presented throughout this application; 2) The consistent growth in the numbers of cancer grants, publications, clinical research studies, and accrual to trials; 3) The expansion of the breadth and depth of the cancer focused research within each of the research programs and the maturation of a new Cancer Control Program; and 4) The increase in cancer-focused education and training opportunities. Features of the HCC that play a critical role in achieving and maintaining the cancer focus include the personal commitment of the Director and the senior leadership and their representation of many major departments of the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC). This organizational infrastructure has enabled the HCC to fully engage the leadership of MUSC thereby ensuring a robust institutional commitment that further promotes the ability of the HCC to promote its agenda. These commitments have included the substantial increases in new research space devoted to the HCC described previously in Section 7.1 Facilities; enhancement of the depth and breadth of shared resources that enable cutting-edge research; and successful recruitment of innovative, cancer-focused investigators who are leaders in their respective fields. In parallel, the HCC has harnessed all available resources at MUSC, at the state level and nationally, to significantly augment its commitment to addressing cancers of particular concern within its specific catchment area, the State of South Carolina (SC), with a particular emphasis on tobacco control and addressing cancer disparities. The enrichment activities (retreats, seminar series, etc.) of the HCC are further used to consolidate and promote the cancer focus by bringing together basic researchers with clinical cancer investigators. The following provides demonstrable evidence of the cancer focus at the HCC.